COSTA MESA : Senior Center Cooks Up a Fund-Raiser

The Costa Mesa Senior Center has collected 250 recipes and designed a cookbook, “Sharing Our Best,” to raise money for the center’s operations.

The center is now taking orders for the cookbooks, which will be delivered in November, said Jeffrey Hovsepian, development director for the Costa Mesa Senior Citizens Corp., which will oversee operations at the center. The $2.5-million center is expected to open next March.

Recipes include those for Armenian, Scottish, German, Hawaiian and other foods. The recipes have been submitted by several people, including Mayor Mary Hornbuckle and other well-known residents of Costa Mesa, he said.

Poems and cooking hints accompany some of the recipes.

The center hopes to raise $3,000 through cookbook sales, part of a fund-raising campaign to solicit more private donations for the center, Hovsepian said.

Currently, senior volunteers have made telephone calls to potential donors, and a newsletter will be sent out in September to inform Costa Mesa residents about the center, he said.

To order a cookbook, which costs $7.95 per copy, call (714) 645-2356.